Research by the Milner Center for Evolution at the University of Bath, U.K., along with colleagues at Universities of Oxford and Aberdeen, finds that trust in scientists has hugely increased overall since the COVID-19 pandemic, but that attitudes have also become more polarized. The study also found that people were more likely to take the COVID-19 vaccine if their trust in the science had increased.
Research by the Milner Center for Evolution at the University of Bath, U.K., along with colleagues at Universities of Oxford and Aberdeen, finds that trust in scientists has hugely increased overall since the COVID-19 pandemic, but that attitudes have also become more polarized. The study also found that people were more likely to take the COVID-19 vaccine if their trust in the science had increased.
Whether it be climate change, vaccines or GM foods, trust in science and scientists has rarely been more important. But can trust be changed? Does change in trust reflect change in behavior?
Using data from a survey of more than 2,000 U.K. adults commissioned by the Genetics Society, the team asked individuals whether their trust in scientists had gone up, down or stayed the same.
A third of people reported that their trust in scientists had gone up.
